Rush to offer deities milk continues

The faithful continued to flock to temples since the morning as word got around of idols of Hindu deities drinking milk while scientists ascribed it to soaking of liquid by dry clay and some leaders on Monday asked people to use reason instead of going by superstition.

Long queues of men, women and children were seen in front of Durga, Shiva and Ganesha temples in several parts of Madhya Pradesh as people offered spoons full of milk to the idols. Many went there out of curiosity.

At some places, rituals were also performed. Reports of people witnessing the "divine event" were received from Indore, Ratlam, Mandsaur, Jabalpur, Guna and Gwalior.

"I have personally offered milk to Goddess Durga and similar offerings were made by devotees since Sunday evening," a priest of Bhavani temple in Bhopal said.

People with pots of milk also made a beeline for temples in Kanpur. Ram Prasad, priest of a Hanuman temple said they started reaching the temple to offer milk since Sunday night.

The industrial town's Shiva, Durga, Shani, and Sanatan Dharma temples were also full. There was a rush to a temple in Kolkata's Kidderpore area on Sunday night to offer milk to Shiva after TV channels beamed reports of the happening.

West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadev Bhattacharjee asked people to go by logic and reason.

"It is unfortunate that a large section of the people is still guided by illogical views," he told reporters when asked about the re-run of the 1995 episode of Ganesh idols drinking milk.